Ayan Farah

AYAN FARAH First National Pavilion of the Federal Republic of Somalia La Biennale di Venezia 2026 Sadaxleey, May 9 – November 22, 2026 Palazzo Caboto, 1645 via Giuseppe Garibaldi ______ Ayan Farah has been invited to represent the Federal Republic of Somalia at the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia – together with Asmaa Jama and Warsan Shire. This marks Somalia’s inaugural presentation on a dedicated national platform at the Biennale. Curated by Mohamed Mire and Fabio Scrivanti, the exhibition takes place at Palazzo Caboto in the heart of via Garibaldi. Titled SADDEXLEEY (sa-DEH-ley), the Pavilion takes its name from a Somali poetic form shaped through triadic composition. Derived from saddex (sa-DEH), meaning three, it describes a generative logic in which meaning unfolds through repetition, variation, and relation. Rooted in Somalia’s oral tradition, where poetry functions as social architecture and lived philosophy, the exhibition spatializes poetic form in resonance with Koyo Kouoh’s theme In Minor Keys. Word, sound, and matter converge as a living poem, oscillating between fragility and endurance. SADDEXLEEY proposes belonging not as a declaration, but as sensation. ______ About the Somalia National Pavilion The 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia marks the historic inaugural participation of the Federal Republic of Somalia. The Pavilion is officially supported by the Office of the Prime Minister, Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Somalia. Commissioned by Abdirahman Yusuf Mohamud and curated by Mohamed Mire and Fabio Scrivanti, the exhibition presents a unified narrative of Somali contemporary cultural production. The inaugural pavilion features the work of three distinguished artists: Ayan Farah, Asmaa Jama, and Warsan Shire. ______ Image credit: 1 & 2. Photo: Christofer Wallentin 3 & 4. Desert Seeds, 2025. Clay, cloud-seeded water and hand embroidery on canvas, 280 x 1280 cm. Photo: Simon Vogel. Courtesy of the artist, Galerie Nordenhake Berlin/Stockholm/Mexico City, Kadel Willborn, and Blue Knowledge Art Collection, Amsterdam.

SADDEXLEEY For its first participation in La Biennale di Venezia, Somalia presents a pavilion structured as a poetic form. Built on three -three artists, three registers, three relations. SADDEXLEEY unfolds through repetition, variation, and rhythm. Featuring @ayanfarah @asmaa_floats @warsanshiree Curated by Mohamed Mire and Fabio Scrivanti, commissioned by Abdirahman Yusuf Mohamud. #Somaliapavilion

Repost • @galerie_nordenhake AYAN FARAH⁠ Art Basel Unlimited 2025⁠ ______⁠ ⁠ For Unlimited, Ayan Farah examines the tension between ephemerality and permanence, reflecting the delicate balance of ecosystems and cultures. In Desert Seeds, the artist uses cloud-seeded water from the UAE and Somali clay as pigment to explore cultural identity. She first incorporates embroidery to create a richly layered surface while maintaining a monochromatic quality that encourages viewers to engage deeply. The presentation is a collaboration between Galerie Nordenhake and Kadel Willborn.⁠ ______⁠ ⁠ Image credits:⁠ ⁠ Photos by Simon Vogel⁠ ⁠ #ayanfarah #unlimited #artbasel2025 #artbaselunlimited @ayanfarah @kadelwillborn ⁠ ⁠

The energy of May 8th. Video highlights from the historic inauguration of the first Somalia National Pavilion. — SADDEXLEEY Ayan Farah Asmaa Jama Warsan Shire Somalia National Pavilion 61st International Art Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia May 9 to November 22, 2026 Palazzo Caboto, 1645 via Giuseppe Garibaldi, Venice Commissioner: Abdirahman Yusuf Curators: Mohamed Mire and Fabio Scrivanti #somaliapavilion

Songs from a Seasonal River I, II Seashell pigment and seaweed dye on canvas, embroidery 200 x 270 cm ( diptych ) 200 x 270 cm ( diptych ) 2026 are currently on view at the first Somalia National Pavilion, @somaliapavilion the 61st Biennale di Venezia. The works are made with pigment derived from shells collected along the River Tay in Scotland. Ground into pigment and used as a dye, the shells carry traces of tide, erosion, industry and time. Though the river itself flows year round, the work reflects on its seasonal transformations, shifts in light, sediment and tidal movement that continually reshape its edges and memory. The river becomes a changing archive, where material is deposited and carried onward. Through their muted mineral tones, the paintings emerge as subtile songs of movement and renewal, shaped by cycles of water and the fragile histories embedded within the riverbed. Photographer: Sebastiano Persano

On May 8th, the very first Somalia National Pavilion officially opened, a historic day. Through the profound work of Ayan Farah, Asmaa Jama, and Warsan Shire, our oral heritage has been translated into physical space. The pavilion was officially inaugurated by the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism and the Director of the National Museum of Somalia. We were honored to share this milestone with delegates from the Somali global community, partners, family and friends, and the wider art community. We are incredibly grateful to our artists, and to the Somali community whose love and belief brought us here. The doors are open. Welcome to SADDEXLEEY. — SADDEXLEEY Ayan Farah Asmaa Jama Warsan Shire Somalia National Pavilion 61st International Art Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia May 9 to November 22, 2026 Palazzo Caboto, 1645 via Giuseppe Garibaldi, Venice Commissioner: Abdirahman Yusuf Curators: Mohamed Mire and Fabio Scrivanti ©️Somalia National Pavilion

The Year of the Red Storm Clay and Indigo on canvas, embroidery 700 x 220 cm 2026 Is currently on view at the first Somalia National Pavilion The 61st Biennale di Venezia @somaliapavilion

Ayan Farah, in process. Working with clay, sand, and natural materials. Sand and stories from the Sanaag region in Somalia are carried into the work. The Year of the Red Storm (2026), presented in the exhibition. © Somalia National Pavilion — SADDEXLEEY Ayan Farah Asmaa Jama Warsan Shire Somalia National Pavilion 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia 🗓 May 9 to November 22, 2026 📍 Palazzo Caboto, 1645 via Giuseppe Garibaldi, Venice Commissioner: Abdirahman Yusuf Curators: Mohamed Mire and Fabio Scrivanti #Somaliapavilion

Ayan Farah is a Somali-Swedish artist based in Stockholm, working across painting, textiles, and material-led research. Engaging with land, water, and natural elements, her practice explores how materials carry traces of place, movement, and time. As part of SADDEXLEEY, this approach is shaped through rhythm, repetition, and relation, where form becomes a way of sensing and holding presence. @ayanfarah has exhibited internationally, including at Moderna Museet, Fondazione Prada, Bundeskunsthalle, and the Hunterian Art Gallery. Image 1: Portrait of Ayan Farah by Christofer Wallentin Image 2: Cosmology (2924) Liljevalchs, Stockholm — SADDEXLEEY Ayan Farah Asmaa Jama Warsan Shire Somalia National Pavilion 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia 🗓 May 9 to November 22, 2026 📍 Palazzo Caboto, 1645 via Giuseppe Garibaldi, Venice Commissioner: Abdirahman Yusuf Curators: Mohamed Mire and Fabio Scrivanti #Somaliapavilion

Last days to see Ghost River
23.1.2026 — 7.3.2026 Kadel Willborn
Birkenstraße 3, Düsseldorf @Kadelwillborn Sky Stone Senegalese indigo, madder, Australian indigo, and ink on French linen 170 × 130 cm 2026 Sky Stone is painted on French linen using pigments and dyes gathered through travels and material research. The indigo and the madder that is derived from tree bark, are both hand picked in Senegal. The studio processed India ink and Australian indigo surface through the layers. The work brings together pigments that carry distinct geographies, allowing colour, sediment, and place to meet within the surface of the painting.

@feriaarco Booth 9C10 4 – 8 March 2026 Ayan Farah @ayanfarah Céline Ducrot @celine.i.d Heidi Hahn @heidihahn123 Vivian Greven @viviangreven Shannon Bool @eeatyourmakeup Esther Kläs @_realitymore Linda Matalon Helmut Dorner Opening Hours Arco Madrid 2026 Preview: 4 March: 12:00 p.m–8:00 p.m. 5 March: 11:00 a.m–8:00 p.m. 6 March: 12:00 p.m–3:00 p.m. Public: 6 March: 3:00 p.m–8:00 p.m. 7 March: 12:00 p.m–8:00 p.m. 8 March: 12:00 p.m–6:00 p.m. For any questions please contact Iris Kadel: [email protected] Image: Ayan Farah Untitled, 2018 marigold and carob on hemp, 200 × 170 cm

AYAN FARAH First National Pavilion of the Federal Republic of Somalia La Biennale di Venezia 2026 Sadaxleey May 9 – November 22, 2026 Palazzo Caboto 1645 via Giuseppe Garibaldi ______ Ayan Farah has been invited to represent the Federal Republic of Somalia at the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia – together with Asmaa Jama and Warsan Shire. This marks Somalia’s inaugural presentation on a dedicated national platform at the Biennale. Curated by Mohamed Mire and Fabio Scrivanti, the exhibition takes place at Palazzo Caboto in the heart of via Garibaldi. Titled SADDEXLEEY (sa-DEH-ley), the Pavilion takes its name from a Somali poetic form shaped through triadic composition. Derived from saddex (sa-DEH), meaning three, it describes a generative logic in which meaning unfolds through repetition, variation, and relation. Rooted in Somalia’s oral tradition, where poetry functions as social architecture and lived philosophy, the exhibition spatializes poetic form in resonance with Koyo Kouoh’s theme In Minor Keys. Word, sound, and matter converge as a living poem, oscillating between fragility and endurance. SADDEXLEEY proposes belonging not as a declaration, but as sensation. ______ About the Somalia National Pavilion The 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia marks the historic inaugural participation of the Federal Republic of Somalia. The Pavilion is officially supported by the Office of the Prime Minister, Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Somalia. Commissioned by Abdirahman Yusuf Mohamud and curated by Mohamed Mire and Fabio Scrivanti, the exhibition presents a unified narrative of Somali contemporary cultural production. The inaugural pavilion features the work of three distinguished artists: Ayan Farah, Asmaa Jama, and Warsan Shire. ______ Images: 1. Ayan Farah, Photo: Christofer Wallentin 2. Desert Seeds, 2025. Clay, cloud-seeded water and hand embroidery on canvas, 280 x 1280 cm. Courtesy of the artist, Galerie Kadel Willborn, Düsseldorf, Galerie Nordenhake Berlin/Stockholm/Mexico City and Blue Knowledge Art Collection, Amsterdam.